“Are you saying that the whole mountain is a pyrite mine?”
Kim Joo-hyuk’s small eyes were open wide.
“There are also some nickels buried in there too. I’ve also confirmed that there are other minor minerals mixed in the rocks. Why don’t you take some for samples?”
Astounded by the mine’s scale, he was dumbfounded.
“Mr. Lee. Do you have any idea how large your mine is?”
It was quite big including the whole mountain of minerals and what was buried underground, but it was not a surprising size compared to other mines in Kazakhstan. However, Kim Joo-hyuk almost looked like he was going to faint.
It was because Korea was not a country with a lot of underground resources and he had never seen a mine that huge. Youngho would have felt the same if he was in Kim Joo-hyuk’s shoes but having lived in the Caucasus region for years now, a scale like this was nothing to him.
“Strip mines are common around here. A scale like this is not considered large in this country. Oh, by the way, some of the minerals contain gold components and they’d be charged separately.”
At the mention of ‘gold,’ Kim Joo-hyuk did not know what to say. It was a tremendous deal for him.
The two entered a restaurant near Koryoin town where many laborers stayed for mining. As soon as he sat down, Kim Joo-hyuk pulled his seat toward Youngho.
“Mr. Lee. I don’t know much about mines but you have a huge mine. You won’t change your mind about providing minerals for us, right?”
“A verbal promise is still a promise.”
“Thank you. Then, would it be alright if our company builds a processing plant first?”
“…”
Not fully understanding what he was saying, Youngho only blinked his eyes.
They had previously agreed that Youngho would be in charge of processing the minerals and delivering them to the Black Sea, but it seemed that seeing the mine with his own eyes changed Kim Joo-hyuk’s mind. Although Youngho was not sure if Kim Joo-hyuk was in the position to decide it without the permission of the company’s owners, he was exuberated by his reaction.
“I’m trying to institute cutting-edge processing technology.”
“I thought you said you don’t know much about mines…”
“I know what kind of processing minerals go through from sorting to smelting. H Corporation has an ironworks and I have to know some of the basics since I’m the vice-president of H Rotem. It’d be a problem if the chairman asks a question and I can’t provide him a valid answer.”
It seemed that management specialists like Kim Joo-hyuk who belonged to a corporation worked hard to keep their positions. Since owners were like kings in the corporate world, if they were not satisfied with the specialists, they could fire them at any time.
Anyway, since Kim Joo-hyuk offered it first, Youngho did not have to think about building a processing factory now, which meant that he did not need to make roads from the factory to Arirang Farm’s Wharf either. H Rotem would take care of all of the construction.
If Youngho’s shipping company delivered the minerals to the Black Sea, he would also be able to make money from it. This was like blowing his nose without using his hands.
From then on, Kim Joo-hyuk followed Youngho around every day.
To him, Youngho looked like the widow’s cruise.
“Have you reported what we’ve discussed here to the vice chairman?”
“When I reported everything on the phone, he told me to get a contract signed as soon as possible. It’s something that he’d get credit from the chairman as well. Now everything around you looks like money to me.”
“Sure it does but life here is fiercer than life in Korea. People here would get their guns out if they don’t like something about you.”
“I’ve lived in England in the past and I know how living in a foreign land can be. When I was in England, Kazakhstan was a territory of the Soviet Union but I remember there had been many disputes between autonomous republics around here.”
It seemed that he studied overseas in the late ’80s or early ’90s since Kim Joo-hyuk looked like he was in his early fifties. Back then the Soviet Union had already fallen and many republics demanded independence, so the whole Southeastern Europe and Central Asia would have been uproarious.
Since it was quite pleasant to talk with Kim Joo-hyuk who understood the history and culture of Europe, Youngho met him every day until he left Kazakhstan. Likewise, Kim Joo-hyuk enjoyed Youngho’s company since Youngho was his source of money.
Youngho received an urgent call from Kim Ilkwon when he was attending a celebratory reception dinner for Kazakhstan-Korea railroad car joint-venture.
“Boss. Rena is very ill.”
“What? Then you should go to a hospital, why did you call me?”
“It looks like she has acute appendicitis. Katya wants to take her to Georgia for her surgery because hospital facilities in Tskhinvali are too old to be trusted.”
Although appendicitis was something that could be treated in a local hospital, Katya seemed to be scared and worried about the old hospitals. Youngho knew how poor the hospital environment was since he visited there one time.
Katya was stubbornly asking to get her daughter’s surgery taken in a better facility. It was something that she could not have imagined if there was no light airplane.
She could have called Youngho directly but called Kim Ilkwon because she did not want to be a bother to him. She must have been very frustrated and scared. Youngho felt sorry for her.
“Take her to Tbilisi on the airplane. I’ll call Philip to contact the hospital and the airport of Tbilisi and arrange everything for them.”
“Katya asked if you could come too.”
“I’ll be there for sure. Hurry up. It’s a simple surgery but if you take too long, she might develop peritonitis.”
“I’ll see you soon in Georgia soon.”
As he arrived at the hospital in Tbilisi, Rena was already moved into a ward.
The surgery only took about an hour and since it was a laparoscope surgery that would leave a minimal scar, she only had a few small pieces of gauze on her belly. Except for those, she looked completely fine.
She played fine until Youngho arrived, but as soon as she saw him, she began to whine.
“I’m sorry for bothering you when you’re so busy. I had to ask you to come because I was scared.”
Katya felt bad for calling him since the surgery turned out to be simple.
“What are you talking about? I should surely come when my little Rena had surgery. It’s only been a day but she’s doing so well.”
“She washed her face when I told her you were coming. She’s making a fuss now. She even nagged to go outside to play before you came.”
Youngho was glad that he came. Although Kim Ilkwon and Philip were looking after the mother and daughter, they were not like Youngho whom Rena considered as her father.
“She should be whiney in times like this or when could she be whiney again?”
“Rena told every nurse that her papa was bringing her a gift soon.”
At Katya’s remark, Youngho knew that he made a mistake. Having been carried away by work, he had forgotten about bringing a gift this time.
“Mr. Lee. I was surprised to hear Katya’s daughter calling you ‘papa’.”
Philip was curious about Youngho and Katya’s relationship.
“I once went to an apartment in Volgograd to save Rena for Katya and ever since then she calls me papa. I could not resist the little girl calling me papa.”
“Phew, you are such a humanist, Mr. Lee. You’re now playing a father’s role for her? I’m lucky to have you as my supervisor.”
Philip flattered Youngho for a while calling him numerous names. He was still thankful for Youngho for rescuing him when he was abducted by the Armenian militia in the past. He had told the stories so many times that the whole European chapter knew about it. It was a convincing story since Youngho also had gone to Colombia to rescue his old comrade Edward.
“Thank you, Philip. You’ve been a great help for them. Katya is grateful for your help.”
“Mr. Lee. Katya used to be my colleague once. Also, I should of course do anyone a favor when it comes from you.”
Philip rather thanked Youngho for coming to him first when he needed help. He would have felt sad if Youngho did not ask for his help.
Staffs of the hospital were nervous since so many people visited the hospital to arrange and process the surgery and stay for the little girl. It was because Philip mobilized the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi to prepare for Rena’s hospital stay.
Using his connection, he arranged an ambulance at the airport, so it could pick up Rena as soon as she arrived at the airport but the name of her disease was only appendicitis. Thinking that she was from a well-off family or an influential family, hospital staffs assigned a special patient room and primary nurse for her.
Youngho who arrived there later gave the doctor who operated her surgery and primary nurse free Batumi’s Arirang Hotel vouchers as a token of appreciation. The whole hospital was surprised. The Arirang Hotel chain was gaining popularity in the close-knit society of the Caucasus region and everyone knew about it. People knew that there were already three hotels in the Caucasus region and more overseas.
The voucher was not a special certificate. Youngho simply gave them his business card and wrote a note in the back of the card asking to take good care of the guests for several days.
No matter how trivial a surgery was, when a person goes under the knife, he would feel weakened for a while. Rena could not fly back to Tskhinvali when she just had undergone surgery, so Katya and Rena planned to stay in Tbilisi for several more days. To Rena, it was the first trip away from her home. She was excited to look around Tbilisi.
The city was full of high buildings and new products that were hard to find in a small city like Tskhinvali. Youngho smiled to see Rena amazed by new things walking through the streets.
Holding Youngho and Katya’s hands on each side while walking around the city itself was a fun experience for Rena. As Youngho bought her things which she showed interest in, she had nothing to envy of the world.
Katya was also happy to see her daughter having fun.
“Ilkwon. Katya seemed to have changed. Have you noticed anything?”
“Katya is always like that. Don’t you see it? It’s because she likes you, Boss.”
Katya could easily be with a guy if she wanted to, so Youngho asked her about it one time but she had been acting weird ever since. He wondered if she was not looking for guys because of Rena.
“Boss. You are Rena’s foster father. Why don’t you get along with Katya more? People in Tskhinvali think you’re her husband.”
“That’s just a rumor. There’s nothing between us, actually.”
“I’m saying, since there is really nothing between you two, you can treat her more naturally. If you’re confident, you don’t have to be so conscious of other’s eyes.”
“Oh, yeah? I tried to stay away from her because I didn’t feel easy around her. You think she’d be sad if I keep pushing her away?”
Youngho thought that he should act more naturally around her for the sake of Rena. Although Katya might try to make a move, he would be fine if he could defend himself.
Rena said goodbye with a smile.
She used to throw a fit and nag whenever she had to let him go but spending time with him for a week seemed to have resolved her need for a fatherly figure in her life. She gained confidence since Youngho was around when she was unwell in the hospital. She now learned that he would be around when she was in danger or harmful situations. Sometimes, kids could be more perceptive than adults. They intuitively knew whom to trust and whom not to trust.
She kissed him on his cheek as she was going on an airplane to return to Tskhinvali. It seemed that the trip to Tbilisi was quite satisfactory for her.
It was the same for Katya. The two ladies sent Youngho with a blessing.
